


Important

by startrekkingaroundasgard



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Arguing, F/M, Feelings, Fluff and Angst, Suggestive Themes, The Master Has Issues (Doctor Who), Unresolved Tension, soft touches
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-02
Updated: 2020-03-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:27:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22992451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/startrekkingaroundasgard/pseuds/startrekkingaroundasgard
Summary: The Master gets annoyed with the reader and during an argument he accidentally confesses that he really does care about her.
Relationships: The Master (Dhawan)/Reader
Comments: 10
Kudos: 76





	Important

**Author's Note:**

> Based on a request I got on tumblr: Hii could you please write some Dhawan!Master where he usually acts annoyed by the reader but he actually likes her a lot and one day something happens (she gets hurt or they start arguing or maybe he just gets distracted while talking) and he lets it slip out that he really cares about her but then tries to play it cool

“Feet off the console,” The Master huffed, whacking your ankles as he passed by. “Are you some kind of animal? You should know the rules by now.”

You rolled your eyes and dramatically swung your legs off the edge, making as much noise as possible as your feet hit the ground. The Master glared in your direction, the kind of stare that would make any sane person run for their lives, before returning his attention to the navigation screen. 

The Gallifreyan symbols were beyond your understanding but there must have been an imbalance of some kind because he frantically started pushing buttons. Urgently, he said to you, “Blue switch. No, not that one! Do you want to fly us into a black hole?”

“There are five blue switches over here!” you yelled back, fingers trembling over the knobs and dials. Really, he should have them labelled if he expected you to be of any real help. “How am I supposed to know which one you mean?”

He stormed around the central console and flicked the switch himself, barging pasting you as he returned to the screen. The Master tugged at it so hard that it almost snapped off of its arm. The TARDIS groaned in despair, perking up slightly when he gently patted the edge of the console. 

The Master, though, was not so quick to cheer. “If you’d paid any attention to what I said, you might actually have learned something useful." 

"Someone’s in a good mood today,” you grumbled. 

He’d been acting this way for weeks now. It was as if everything you did, that your very presence here, was an annoying nuisance. In trying to give him space, he’d gotten annoyed by your lack of interest. By trying to help, you always ended up doing the wrong thing. There was no winning anymore. You were starting to wonder whether he really wanted you here at all. 

Hoping to relieve a little of the tension between you, you jumped from your chair and flung an arm around his shoulder. The startled glare that you received in return, so intense that it could have burned through the thickest steel, had you stumbling backwards. Eyes on the ground, vaguely wondering where in the universe socks that bright could possibly be in fashion, you asked, “Where are we going?”

“I am going to Earth to catch up with an old friend." 

Your breath caught at the mention of Earth. It had been your home, once. Long ago, before you met The Master, when you life had been nothing more than a series of dull snapshots, when you’d drifted from one place to another without a care, without a plan. When he’d given you the chance to leave, to make something better of your life, you’d accepted without a second thought. 

"You are going to stay here and try to stay out of my way for once.”

You laughed, realising a moment too late that he wasn’t joking. “What? No. If you’re going to Earth then I’m coming too.”

“No, you aren’t." 

That was it. Enough was enough. You grabbed The Master’s by the arm, gripping on to the purple coat despite the warning glare in his eyes. "If you don’t want me around to embarrass you while you see your doctor, at least let me walk about like I’m not your fucking prisoner!”

The Master laughed harshly, tearing his arm free from your grip with ease. “A prisoner? You could leave here whenever you wanted! I can’t get rid of you!”

That hurt. You’d always known that he’d drop you back one day, maybe on Earth, maybe somewhere else entirely, but to think that the time was nearly here, that you’d outstayed your welcome… It wasn’t the adventures you’d miss, although how you would ever be able to settle in one place again after everything you’d seen you didn’t know. 

No, what you’d miss most was him. The Master himself. You’d certainly hoped that he felt the same way but now you weren’t so sure. 

Barely more than a whisper, you asked, “Is that what you want? For me to leave?”

The TARDIS shuddered as it landed, cutting him off before he could say anything either way. His previous engagement taking priority over this conversation, The Master shot you a dark glare and ordered, “Stay. Here.”

“I want to come.”

“I will not tell you again.” He shoved you backwards, actually smiling when you returned the favour. 

“I am not a child, Master!”

“Then stop acting like one!”

You took a breath, calming your anger with an ease that he could certainly never match. It burned inside him, a constant flame that you knew would never die. Yours, on the other hand, flickered away and gave way to the wave of sadness that now filled your chest. That was just as painful, if not more so. 

As he walked away, you asked, “Why won’t you take me with you?”

The cracking of your voice visibly affected him. He managed a few more steps before he spun around and shouted, “Because it isn’t safe! What I have planned for The Doctor, people will die. I can’t risk you being one of them.”

“Why?”

Purposefully choosing to misinterpret the question, The Master shoved his hands in his pockets and rocked on the balls of his feet. “People always have to die. It’s so boring otherwise.”

“Master…”

“You are important.”

You found that difficult to believe. You’d seen the wonders of the universe, the highs and the lows, the most beautiful sights and the absolute horrors in the shadows. With all of that out there, it was difficult to believe that your life was worth more than anyone else’s. “No, I’m not.”

“Yes, you are. To me.” Vulnerability flickered across his face but he quickly covered it with a smile, playing it off as if he hadn’t just admitted something incredibly intimate. “Who else would put up with me and my schemes? You’ve come so far since I first picked you up. Ah, the days when you thought murder was wrong.”

"I still do.“

"Oh, really? Figured you’d changed your mind after you stood by and watched me kill the king of Foanata. Pretty sure you clapped along with the rest of the natives as his head rolled down the stairs.”

“That’s different. He deserved it, after what he was doing to his people.”

The Master skipped back up the TARDIS and cupped your cheeks, a manic grin on his face. “Moral righteousness suits you, love." 

He held your face for a long few seconds, the depth of his gaze overwhelming. You could lose yourself in those dark eyes. Something flickered across them, a spark of hope - or maybe you were just projecting, you couldn’t be sure - before he finally stepped away and the spell broke. "Are you going to be good and stay put or do I need to tie you down?”

You raised your eyebrows at his tone, wondering just how long he’d been waiting to spring that one on you. “We’ll save that for another day, yeah?”

“Is that a promise?”

The nerve of the man. Still, you couldn’t say that the idea wasn’t a tempting one. Although, after spending years travelling with The Master, you knew that he’d almost certainly prefer being on the receiving end. Pushing all of those thoughts aside, you touched his arm and said gently, “Try not to hurt too many people, please.”

The Master stood to attention, giving a mock salute as he clipped his heels together. “Yes, Ma'am.” His smile turned sincere, a rare glance to the man that hid beneath the facade. The soft and gentle, severely broken man. “I’ll be back soon. Stay put.”

The unspoken please hung in the air and you nodded, finally acquiescing. You sat yourself down beside the console and swung your feet up onto the centre pillar. He groaned at the blatant disrespect you showed his TARDIS but there was a twinkle in his eye, an appreciation of your quiet chaotic nature. 

You met his smile with one of your own. “I’ll be right here.”

**Author's Note:**

> Come talk to me on tumblr!


End file.
